BACKGROUND: Recent federal policy changes under the Trump administration led to the abrupt termination of hundreds of National Institutes of Health (NIH)–funded projects, disproportionately affecting research on sexual and gender minority (SGM) health.
PURPOSE: This manuscript presents a structured reflective synthesis of contemporaneous field notes and facilitated summit discussions from the 2025 SGM National Nursing Summit, a national convening of nursing students, researchers, administrators, and clinicians held during a period of significant political disruption.
METHODS: We synthesize the concerns, tensions, and priorities that surfaced as participants grappled with the implications of these changes for SGM research, education, and practice.
DISCUSSION: Five interrelated areas emerged across discussions: generational differences in how the current moment is understood; experiences of institutional withdrawal and betrayal; uncertainty around whether to persist or redirect SGM-focused work; calls for greater intersectional solidarity; and growing career precarity, particularly among early-career scholars.
CONCLUSION: Conversations reflected a shift from long-term planning toward collective meaning-making and immediate problem-solving. The paper concludes with practical recommendations intended to support researchers, strengthen professional networks, and sustain SGM nursing scholarship, offering insights for nursing leaders navigating rapidly evolving policy and workforce challenges.
Following the rainbow brick road: Lessons for nursing leadership from the 2nd LGBTQ+ National Nursing Summit (2025) amid policy disruption
Nursing Outlook, 74 (6), 102936. doi: 10.1016/j.outlook.2026.102936.